Political powerfuls
The Kennedys, who descend from an Irish immigrant family, are a quintessential example of the American Dream.
The first Kennedys emigrated from Ireland to Boston in 1848, and after just one generation, a Kennedy entered politics, when Patrick Joseph "P.J." served first as State Representative, and then Governor, of Massachusetts.
P.J.'s son, Joseph Patrick, became the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom, and had nine children: Joseph Patrick Jr., John Fitzgerald, Rosemary, Kathleen, Eunice, Patricia, Robert Francis, Jean, and Edward ("Ted").
The three youngest of P.J.'s sons, John F., Robert F., and Ted, all became prominent figures in the U.S. government. JFK took office as President of the United States in 1961, and served until 1963 when he was assassinated. RFK served as U.S. Attorney General from '61 to '64 and announced in '68 that he would also be making a run for the White House, but was shot and killed shortly after winning the California primary election. And from 1962 to 2009, Ted was the Senator of Massachusetts, the third longest-serving senator the country has ever seen. He died in 2009 after a battle with brain cancer.
But many Kennedys remain on Capitol Hill. JFK and Jackie O.'s daughter Caroline is the U.S. Ambassador to Japan; JFK's sister Eunice married former mayor of Santa Monica, Calif., Robert Sargent Shriver, Jr., and their daughter Maria married actor and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Maria and Arnold's daughter Katherine wrote a book, and their son Patrick started a philanthropic clothing line called Project360. RFK's grandson Joe Kennedy III was elected to Massachusetts' 4th congressional district in 2012.